Carter Alphonse Starocci (born February 8, 2001) is an American

freestyle Freestyle may refer to: Brands * Reebok Freestyle, a women's athletic shoe * Ford Freestyle, an SUV automobile * Coca-Cola Freestyle, a vending machine * Abbott FreeStyle, a blood glucose monitor by Abbott Laboritories Media * '' FreeStyle'', ...

and former folkstyle wrestler who competes at 184 pounds. In freestyle, he was a U23 World bronze medalist in 2022. In folkstyle, Starocci is the only five-time NCAA Division I National champion in history, and was a three-time

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

champion out of the

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

Career

High school

Starocci was born and raised in

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pen ...

, where he started

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

at the age of three. Raised

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, he attended

Cathedral Preparatory School Cathedral Preparatory School (often referred to simply as Prep) is a private, Roman Catholic, college-preparatory high school for girls and boys in Erie, Pennsylvania, United States. It was established in 1921 by Archbishop John Mark Gannon a ...

. During his

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

years, Starocci became a two-time PIAA state champion and a four-time state placer. In

, he placed at multiple national tournaments and was a Fargo National champion as well as in

Greco-Roman The Greco-Roman world , also Greco-Roman civilization, Greco-Roman culture or Greco-Latin culture (spelled Græco-Roman or Graeco-Roman in British English), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and co ...

. One of the top-recruits in the country, Starocci committed to wrestle for the

Penn State Nittany Lions The Penn State Nittany Lions are the athletic teams of Pennsylvania State University, except for the women's basketball team, known as the Penn State Lady Lions basketball, Lady Lions. The school colors are navy blue and white. The school mascot ...

, and closed out his high school career at 172–10.

Pennsylvania State University

2019–2020

Starocci wore a

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

during his first year in college, racking up an unbeaten 19–0 record and titles from the Southern Scuffle, the Edinboro Open, the Patriot Open and the Clarion Open while wrestling unattached.

2020–2021

Competing as a

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...

, Starocci recorded a 6–1 mark in dual meets during regular season, with a lone loss to DJ Washington though a notable victory over All-American Logan Massa. At the

Championships, Starocci placed second, falling to Michael Kemerer from

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

after defeating Nebraska's All-American Mikey Labriola to cruise to the finals. Starocci, the third-seed, then became the NCAA Division I National champion with a series of back-to-back wins, and a rematch-victory over Kemerer in the finals to top it off. After the season, Starocci went up 13 pounds and competed at the US Olympic Team Trials at 86 kilograms, having qualified by becoming an NCAA champion a month before. He was eliminated after losing back-to-back matches to U23 World champion

Bo Nickal Bo Dean Nickal (born January 14, 1996) is an American professional mixed martial artist, former freestyle wrestler and graduated folkstyle wrestler who currently competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). ...

and

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

champion Myles Martin.

2021–2022

In September 2021, Starocci competed at the US World Team Trials at 79 kilograms, where after falling in the first round to US National champion Taylor Lujan, he racked up wins over the likes of teammate and three-time NCAA champion

Jason Nolf Jason Michael Nolf (born January 10, 1996) is an American freestyle and former folkstyle wrestler who competes at 74 kilograms. In freestyle, he is a three-time U.S. national champion and a multiple-time medalist in international tournaments. ...

and All-Americans Chance Marsteller and Evan Wick. Back to folkstyle, Starocci went 15–0 in dual meets as a

sophomore In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of Post-secondary school, post-secondary educatio ...

, grabbed his first Big Ten Conference title and became a back-to-back NCAA Division I National champion with victories over fellow NCAA champion Mekhi Lewis, three-time All-American Hayden Hidlay and two-time All-American Michael Kemerer, closing out the year at 25–0. He then competed at the US World Team Trials Challenge Tournament in May, where after falling to US National runner-up Chance Marsteller in a rematch, Starocci defeated three straight opponents, including

Dan Hodge Trophy The Dan Hodge Trophy is awarded each year to the United States of America’s best college wrestler. The trophy is presented at the end of the season by '' WIN'' magazine and Culture House. It is the collegiate wrestling equivalent to the Heisman ...

winner

Alex Dieringer Alex David Dieringer (born June 6, 1993) is an American Freestyle wrestling, freestyle wrestler and graduated Collegiate wrestling, folkstyle wrestler. In freestyle, he has had success in both the international and national circuit, claiming med ...

and three-time All-American David McFadden, to place third. A true-third match against fellow two-time NCAA champion Vincenzo Joseph was set to take place in June at Final X NYC, however, Joseph forfeited the match and Starocci earned a US National Team spot, which qualified him for the

U23 World Championships U, or u, is the twenty-first letter and the fifth vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet and the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''u'' (pronounced ), ...

. In October, Starocci became a U23 World bronze medalist, with wins over U20 World medalist Abdulvasi Balta and U23 European medalist Valentyn Babii though a close loss to Daulet Yergesh in the semi-finals.

2022–2023

Back to folkstyle, Starocci went 16–0 in dual meets during regular season, claimed the Big Ten title and became a three-time 2023 NCAA Division I National champion. He closed up the year at 24–0, with five victories over All-Americans. In April, Starocci reached the semi-finals of the US Open National Championships with a dominant win over four-time All-American Michael Kemerer, though was defeated by three-time NCAA champion

in a rematch, and subsequently dropped out of the tournament to place sixth.

2023–2024

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

, Starocci came in the season looking to become the sixth four-time NCAA champion in history, and looked fit to do so after picking up nine dual meet victories and a Journeymen Classic title. However, he suffered a knee injury right at the end of his last dual meet, and was forced to medical forfeit out of the Big Ten Championships, though earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament due to past accomplishments. After two forfeits which counted as losses, Starocci, the ninth-seed, earned four straight victories, including two over past NCAA champions Mekhi Lewis and Shane Griffith, before cruising to the finals and defeating Rocco Welsh to become a four-time NCAA champion. Starocci then competed at the US Olympic Team Trials in April, where he was expected to cut down to 74 kilograms, though ended up going up to 86 kilograms. After a win over US National champion Pat Downey, he was defeated by U23 World finalist Trent Hidlay, and later forfeited out of the tournament to end his run.

2024–2025

Starocci was given an extra year of eligibility as an athlete who competed during the COVID-affected 2020-21 season. He won the Big Ten Tournament in March and was named the Big Ten Wrestler of the Year. He would go onto win the

NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships The NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championships have been held since 1928. In addition to determining the national champion in each weight class, the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships also determines All-American wrestlers for each weight ...

later in March, becoming the first ever five-time NCAA Division I National champion.

Freestyle record

! colspan="7", Senior Freestyle Matches , - ! Res. ! Record ! Opponent ! Score ! Date ! Event ! Location , - ! style=background:white colspan=7 , , - , Win , 17–8 , align=left, Parker Keckeisen , style="font-size:88%", 4–3 , style="font-size:88%", June 14, 2025 , style="font-size:88%", 2025 Final X , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;",

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

, - , Loss , 16–8 , align=left,

Kyle Dake Kyle Douglas Dake (born February 25, 1991) is an American freestyle wrestler and graduated folkstyle wrestler who competes at 74 kilograms. He is a four-time World Champion, winning back-to-back titles twice, at 79 kilos in 2018 and 2019 an ...

, style="font-size:88%", 3–3 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2, May 16–17, 2025 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2, 2025 US World Team Trials Challenge , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2,

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

, - , Win , 16–7 , align=left, Chance Marsteller , style="font-size:88%", 4–2 , - ! style=background:white colspan=7 , , - , Loss , , align=left, Evan Wick , style="font-size:88%", FF , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3, April 19, 2024 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=3, 2024 US Olympic Team Trials , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=3,

State College, Pennsylvania State College is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough and Home rule municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule municipality in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a college town, home to the University Park, Pennsylvania, University Park ...

, - , Loss , 15–7 , align=left, Trent Hidlay , style="font-size:88%", 4–6 , - , Win , 15–6 , align=left, Pat Downey , style="font-size:88%", 12-4 , - ! style=background:white colspan=7 , , - , Loss , , align=left, Alex Marinelli , style="font-size:88%", FF , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5, April 27, 2023 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5, 2023 US Open National Championships , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=5,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, - , Loss , 14–6 , align=left,

, style="font-size:88%", 1–7 , - , Win , 14–5 , align=left, Michael Kemerer , style="font-size:88%", 9–0 , - , Win , 13–5 , align=left, Jay Nivison , style="font-size:88%", TF 10–0 , - , Win , 12–5 , align=left, Sean Houston , style="font-size:88%", TF 10–0 , - ! style=background:white colspan=7 , , - , Win , 11–5 , align=left, Valentyn Babii , style="font-size:88%", TF 11–0 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5, October 21–22, 2022 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=5, 2022 U23 World Championships , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=5,

Pontevedra, Spain Pontevedra (, ) is a city in the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. It is the capital of both the ''Comarca'' and Province of Pontevedra, and the capital of the Rías Baixas. It is also the capital of its own municipality ...

, - , Loss , 10–5 , align=left, Daulet Yergesh , style="font-size:88%", 7–8 , - , Win , 10–4 , align=left, Abdulvasi Balta , style="font-size:88%", TF 11–0 , - , Win , 9–4 , align=left, Erik Reinbok , style="font-size:88%", TF 10–0 , - , Win , 8–4 , align=left, Oktay Hasan , style="font-size:88%", TF 11–0 , - ! style=background:white colspan=7 , , - , Win , , align=left, Vincenzo Joseph , style="font-size:88%", FF , style="font-size:88%", June 8, 2022 , style="font-size:88%", 2022 Final X NYC , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;", New York City , - , Win , 7–4 , align=left, David McFadden , style="font-size:88%", 10–2 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4, May 21–22, 2022 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=4, 2022 US World Team Trials , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=4,

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The city covers and had a population of 291,082 as of the 2020 census. It is the state's List of cities in Nebraska, second-most populous city a ...

, - , Win , 6–4 , align=left,

, style="font-size:88%", 5–1 , - , Win , 5–4 , align=left, Brayden Thompson , style="font-size:88%", 10–1 , - , Loss , 4–4 , align=left, Chance Marsteller , style="font-size:88%", 4–5 , - ! style=background:white colspan=7 , , - , Win , 4–3 , align=left,

, style="font-size:88%", 4–3 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6, September 11–12, 2021 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=6, 2021 US World Team Trials , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=6,

, - , Win , , align=left, Isaiah Martinez , style="font-size:88%", FF , - , Win , 3–3 , align=left, Evan Wick , style="font-size:88%", 8–4 , - , Win , 2–3 , align=left, Chance Marsteller , style="font-size:88%", 4–0 , - , Win , 1–3 , align=left, Branson Ashworth , style="font-size:88%", 7–3 , - , Loss , 0–3 , align=left, Taylor Lujan , style="font-size:88%", 4–6 , - ! style=background:white colspan=7 , , - , Loss , 0–2 , align=left, Myles Martin , style="font-size:88%", 2–5 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2, April 2, 2021 , style="font-size:88%" rowspan=2, 2020 US Olympic Team Trials , style="text-align:left;font-size:88%;" rowspan=2,

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

, - , Loss , 0–1 , align=left,

, style="font-size:88%", 1–6 , -

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Starocci, Carter African-American sport wrestlers Living people American male sport wrestlers Penn State Nittany Lions wrestlers Amateur wrestlers Pennsylvania State University alumni 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen 2001 births American people of Italian descent Sportspeople from Erie, Pennsylvania African-American Catholics